The Warrior Princess
by ShadowSeductress
Summary: Taking place during the first Kingdom Hearts, Zaria a girl from a distant world is ripped away from everything she knows when the Heartless overtake her world. She wakes to a foreign land, Radiant Garden. The young girl grows up here with the others but she harbors a deadly secret. She has one of the "Keys" that the others are looking for. OC/Sora
1. Apocalypse

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of the Final Fantasy characters.

Chapter one:

Despite the years that passed, I still remember when the world finally fell. Parts of the memories have faded over time, but never so much that I couldn't call them back. They just sort of float in the void, waiting until I finally remember something in the chain of memories, something to bring it to the surface. Then it's there plain as day, like it never left in the first place.

I remember the screams, the cries for help filling the air like a fog. It clouded everything around it, drenching the earth in a sickly feeling. I remember thinking I could feel the ground gasping for air, like it was suffocating. I was little then, I saw the world through different eyes. The ground was breaking apart beneath our feet, separating, floating in a sea of darkness. The buildings crumbled beneath the force of the world breaking apart, turning skyscrapers to dust before my very eyes.

I didn't have much of a chance to look around, I was being pulled forward, forced to continue moving. I'll never forget the feeling of his hand in mine. His skin was riddled with calluses, rough and strong around my little hand. To me he always looked like a giant. My father had always worked hard. He always had "his nose to the grindstone," my mother would say. He would come home tired and worn out from working in the factory all day, but it never stopped him from sitting in the floor and coloring in my princess coloring books with me when he got home.

I stumbled under the force of his pull; my little legs could not keep up with his strong, running strides. Without missing a beat, he swooped me up and carried me. Everything was shattered. He was leaping over gaps as the world broke into smaller and smaller pieces. My mother was trying desperately to keep up. The jumps were quickly becoming more demanding.

I don't know what they had hoped to accomplish. I'm not sure what my father thought would be at the end of all the hurdles. I know now that there was no hope once it had gotten to that point.

The core had been corrupted.

Our world was doomed.

The monsters oozed from the darkness like the puss riddled infection they had brought to our world. Those yellow eyes penetrating the darkness that took over us. At first that's all you see. It looks like hope, a light within the darkness. Something to make you think you just might be saved. Then you see them move, they are shadows themselves, sinking into the ground, startling you when you least expect it.

I had seen what they could do; these monsters had been around for a while, slowly consuming our world from within. When they pounced, there was no gore, no bloodshed, but when you fell beneath them, they consumed you. Then you were just gone, there was nothing left of you, you dissipated into nothingness.

I buried my head in to my dad's chest, terrified as their numbers continued to multiply. They surrounded us, there were so many between us and the next jump. The chunk of land was slowly floating further and further away, like an iceberg floating at sea. That was all that was left.

He knew he had to act quickly. With me held tightly to his chest, and his hand firmly around my mother's wrist, he made a mad break for it. Running at full speed, he pushed his way through the rapidly growing hoard. He almost lost his footing at the jump, the edge being closer than he thought and he stumbled. He held on the edge of the next island, with one arm he pushed me up onto solid ground. I watched him with tears streaming from my eyes, for a moment I didn't think he was going to be able to get up. With an intense groan he was able to pull himself up onto the island. He lied on the ground, gasping for air, his eyes shut.

We shared a look once he opened his eyes, both knowing what the other was thinking. My mother was not with us. He shot to his feet; I was worthless and small, silently crying. She had lost her grip as he ran for the edge. She was surrounded by the demons. He braced himself to try and jump back, to save her, but she shook her head.

He had barely made the jump the first time; he wasn't going to make it again with the extra distance. They were already upon her. She yelled something over the groans of the world splitting, I think it was "Take care of her," but there is no way to be sure. He roared, despite how angry it sounded I knew he was just sad. I was sad too. He didn't let me look, grabbing me up into his arms and running again. I was bawling into his chest, it didn't matter how loud it was around us, I could feel her final screams all they way in my stomach. It ached knowing that she was no more.

With nothing else to prey upon, they all started toward us in a black heap. Like a wave of night sky they grew and rushed toward us. I saw the desperation in his face as I looked up. There was no where else to go. No more chunks of earth to leap to. We were stranded on an island, nothing but purple abyss around us, Heartless running toward us in massive numbers. We were backed into a corner. My dad tripped over one of the creatures. When he fell, I tumbled out of his arms. I just barely caught myself on the edge of the landmass. He reached for me, and just in time. My small hand couldn't hold my body weight. He caught my hand before I fell, his whole torso hanging over the edge, keeping me from falling. It took only seconds, I looked into his scared eyes, and he tried to smile at me, to keep me calm.

"I love you," he mouthed. It seemed like it was all in slow motion, and then as if someone turned it off, all the monster pounced on him before I could blink. His hand vanished and I plunged into the darkness. I think I slept. I don't remember screaming as I fell endlessly into the void.

I didn't dream, I didn't think. There was nothing. I awoke to a foreign landscape, it was late at night, the crickets chirped a happy lullaby in the distance, and for a moment, I thought all of this had been some terrible nightmare. I couldn't keep my eyes open for long, and soon I was falling back into a peaceful slumber.

I woke many times in the days that followed, but only for a few moments. Catching glimpses of my surroundings as I weaved in and out of consciousness. There were hushed, worried whispers all around me. Was I hurt? Or sick? I wasn't sure. I didn't feel any different, only really sleepy. I think now, looking back, I just didn't want to deal with what life had dealt me. My parents were gone, my world was gone. I don't think my young mind was ready to try and process all of that. I don't even know if I realized it had really happened.

When my body decided it had enough of this coma like state, my eyes shot open. I had no idea where I was. I sat up in a bed I had never seen before in my life, the peach walls were alien to me. My mother hated the color peach. Where was I? What had happened? My head reeled with questions that had no answers. I looked to my left, there was a young girl sleeping in a chair. Her brown hair was pulled back in an over-sized red bow. Her long lashes were beautiful against her pale cheeks. She looked so peaceful in the moonlight, it made me forget for a moment that I had no idea who she was.

I tried to swing my feet off the bed, but my legs felt jello-like, they were hard to move, like my brain had forgot how to use my muscles. Instead of successfully getting to my feet, I fell to my knees, making a rather large thud. The sleeping girl in the corner startled herself awake, her eyes locked on what I can only imagine was one of the most pitiful she had ever seen. A small blonde girl lying on the floor in her nightgown, silently weeping.

"Oh!" she jumped to her feet, her voice was airy and soft. I felt at ease even through my swirling confusion. She helped me to my feet and sat me on the bed.

"I'm so sorry," she said smiling at me. "I wanted to be here when you woke up." She handed me a cloth off of the nightstand for me to dry my eyes with. I did. We sat in silence for a while as I regained my composure.

"Who are you?" I asked, my voice mostly taken up by the nasal sound of my stuffy nose.

"My name is Aerith." I remember how kind she sounded, she reminded me of my mom. "What is your name?" she asked me in return.

"Zaria," I answered somewhat reluctantly.

"That's pretty." again with the silence. "Do you know where you are?" she finally asked.

"No." I answered. I was racking my brain for answers, I wasn't even looking at her anymore. My eyes might have been focused on her concerned face, but I was looking through her.

"What happened?" I asked her, my eyes tearing up worried about what the answer might be.

"I don't know much," she was honest. "A few days ago we found you passed out in the courtyard, there was a meteor shower." I wasn't sure what that had to do with me. "I don't know much else," Aerith admitted. "I was hoping you might know something." I didn't say anything.

"How old are you Zaria?" she broke the silence.

"Six." I replied.

"Where are your parents?" I started bawling. She held me to her and shushed me and lulled me till I was calm again.

"You are very brave." she said. We didn't talk much more, I just lay my head in her lap and let her stroke my hair. Eventually I fell back asleep. Everything else is sort of a blur. Aerith is the only clear memory I have of those couple of days that followed. The next morning she gave me some clothes. Even though they were a little big it made me more comfortable than the nightgown I had been wearing. She said they were some of her old things.

Later that day she introduced me to her friends. I acted like the shy child that I was, hiding behind Aerith's skirts. Squall and Rinoa seemed really nice, Riona's dog licked my face which was the first thing to make me smile since I had woke up. I met Yuffie too, she seemed nice enough, but she tried to hard to cheer me up.

"There is someone else I want you to meet," Aerith said as we walked toward the castle. "He can be a little... intimidating at times, but he might be able to help us find out what happened. Is that okay?" She knelt down so she was on my level as she talked, always smiling. I nodded and we made our way into the castle.

After a walk through some long corridors we made our way into what looked like an office. There was an older man behind a desk, writing furiously in a notebook. Aerith cleared her throat as we entered. The blonde man held up a finger to ask us to hang on as he finished his thought on the paper, then he looked up at us.

"Is this the girl?" he asked. Aerith nodded in reply. I didn't like the way he looked at me. Intimidating was an understatement. He looked at me like I was nothing more than some data for him to record in that notebook of his.

"Have a seat." We did as we were told and sat in the chairs across from his desk. "Why don't you tell me what happened." I looked to Aerith for encouragement and she gave it with a smiling nod. It took me a moment to build up my courage, but once I started talking I didn't stop. Even when I started crying I kept telling him through the tears. When I was done, I remember feeling as though someone had wrung me out to dry.

"I think I know what happened to your world." That is when he told me of the heartless and what he thought they were capable of. "I am baffled however, on how you managed to find yourself here."

"I don't know," I replied.

"That is something to think about." and with that he left the room to go deeper into the castle. Aerith urged me back to her house where I had apparently been staying in my unconscious state. She gave me my old clothes, the ones I was wearing when she found me. I took them happily, they were all I had left of my world.

"Oh!" Aerith exclaimed. "I almost forgot," she handed me a small key chain. "I found this in your pocket when I was washing your clothes." I had never seen it before in my life, but I took it anyway. It was pretty. The dainty chain led into a silver locket. My name was engraved in curly letters across the surface. It had to be mine I suppose.

"Well!" Aerith said in her happy little way. "I will give you a minute to get cleaned up. Make yourself at home. Until we decide where you will be staying permanently you are more than welcome to stay here in the guest room." She made her way out the door. "Let me know if you need anything!" She chirped from the other side of the doorway.

I changed back into my clothes and then sat on the end of the bed. I stared at the locket for a long time. Why couldn't I remember this thing? Curiously, I pried the locket open. It didn't look like it was going to open at first, but with a little trouble it finally clicked open.

A bright light filled the room and I was blinded. When my vision finally adjusted I was amazed to look at what my locket had transformed into. My hand griped a long silver shaft. A heart shaped hand guard surrounded my small hand. It was beautifully jeweled. Amethysts and sapphires glittered the hilt. Toward the top the shaft molded into an elegant twisty design. It was jeweled similarly to the handle. I was surprised at how sharp the design was. It seemed familiar somehow, it looked like the tiara's I used to put on my dolls back home. The thing in it's entirety looked like a very fancy old key. With a flick of my wrist it turned back into a locket on a chain.

Upon looking at the weapon that had formed in my hand I knew one thing above all else. I had to keep it a secret. I don't know why I was overcome with this sense of urgency on the subject, but keep it secret I did. It wouldn't be until almost eight years later that anyone would know that I, Zaria Dawn, was a Keyblade barer.


	2. Here We Go Again

**AN: **There were a few mistakes that have been fixed in chapter one. One of those being a typo that made Rinoa's name Riona. Also a Disclaimer has been added which I forgot to add when it was submitted. Thanks for all the feedback and favorites it was a nice surprise for only submitting my first chapter. I am glad to have you aboard and look forward to all of the feedback to come!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Kingdom hearts, or any of the Final Fantasy characters. I do not own Eliora, but she does belong to my best friend who has given me permission to use her in my story.

Chapter Two:

I lived on Radiant Garden for a long time. The days that followed my mysterious arrival soon melted away into weeks. The weeks all melded into months, the months soon became years and before I knew it over six years had flown by. I spent my days helping Aerith with her flower shop in the market outside of the castle. I did everything I could to stay away from the castle actually. Something about it gave me an eerie feeling. I hated the walls, the smell, and Ansem always put me on edge. He disturbed me to the point that in my long stay there I had only seen him twice.

My nights were spent hanging out with Aerith's friends. Cloud and Tifa, Yuffie, Squall, and Rinoa. We were like a big family we ate meals together most nights. Sometimes Cid would come join us too, although he kept pretty busy between his mechanic shop and being called up to the castle to work on the machinery. Squall and Cloud had even taught me a little bit about sparring. Everything was peaceful.

I came home after running my last delivery of the day. My legs were tired from riding my bike around town, I trudged up the road to mine and Aerith's house. Turns out I never found anywhere else to stay and Aerith was more than happy to have me. I opened the door to see everyone sitting in the living room.

"Welcome home!" Aerith said excitedly. I smiled despite being as tired as I was.

"To what do I owe the honor of such a full house?" I asked dropping my bag by the front door.

"Well," started Aerith in her air filled voice. "We were thinking..."

"You were six years old when you got here weren't you?" asked Squall. I nodded in reply.

"Yeah. What of it?" I slumped on the couch next to Yuffie who rustled my hair. It wasn't often we talked about my arrival.

"Well," started Aerith again. "That means..."

"You have been here for six years right?" asked Cloud. I thought for a moment.

"I guess you're right." I agreed.

"That means..." Aerith started again, shooting Cloud a look.

"Do we got to spell it out for you kid?" Yuffie joked. Some would be disoriented by all of them butting in on the conversation but I was quite used to it.

"Let her finish guys!" Tifa said sternly. She waved for Aerith to finish once the room was silent.

"You have officially been here longer than your last home. Now we know that this will never take the place of the world you lost, but we are glad that you have decided to stay with us so long." She stepped aside of the coffee table to present a cake. It was so beautifully decorated and I knew that Aerith had to have done it herself. I could recognize her loopy handwriting across the cake.

"Welcome Home Zaria!" it said. A more sentimental person probably would have cried. Even I felt like crying. This was the sweetest thing anyone had ever tried to do for me and I was touched. Instead I just flashed them all a goofy smile.

"Thanks guys, it means a lot."

"Don't get all mushy on us." Rinoa said through her sweet smile.

We spent the rest of the night hanging out and eating cake. Soon my eyes were drooping and I decided to go upstairs.

"Sorry to be a party pooper, but I'm going to bed." I said rising to my feet.

"Night," rang a chorus of voices from below. I made my way up to my room. I changed into some comfortable clothes for sleeping and then plopped on the bed. My day had lasted longer than I would have liked and I was exhausted.

I couldn't remember much of anything about my old world, or even my house. I remembered my parents a little, but I'm ashamed to admit that I tried not to think about them. I couldn't remember much other than that night. Even when I felt close to remembering some cherished childhood memory it all came to a screeching halt as I was plagued with their dying screams.

I had a family now, even if it was a little unorthodox. I had actual memories of them, I knew them more than I knew my dead parents. I had let go a long time ago. It made me feel guilty to finally realize that this was more my home than my old world ever was.

I caught my reflection in the mirror across the room as I fluffed my pillows. I was not the same girl that landed here over six years ago. My almost platinum blonde hair that I wore most of my childhood had aged right along with me. The color had turned darker, almost brown, but not quite. I was in desperate need of a hair cut, my bangs were too long and fell limply in my eyes. Aggravated I pulled them back. My face had thinned out. I was no longer the cute pudgy faced girl that arrived on their doorsteps. My eyes, now visible since I was holding my bangs back were a nice emerald color.

I stood to look at myself a little more closely in the mirror. You couldn't tell through the bagginess of my sleepwear but I had a rather nice figure too. It wasn't perfect, I don't think any girl would ever say that they were. But my tummy had flattened out, I was starting to mature in places that made me seem a little more womanly. My legs were a little too thick for my liking. They were solid as a rock though. The muscle is what made them so thick. I suppose you couldn't help but have hearty thighs if you rode your bike all day for a living.

I was a totally different person than I was six years ago. That world was gone, and the person that lived there was gone as well. I reached into the pocket of my pajama pants to find my locket. I sighed in defeat. The thing never failed to find me, like a parasite you just couldn't get rid of. I tried throwing it away, burying it, even selling the damn thing. Within minutes it would just be back in my pocket. It was a constant reminder of the world I had lost and the guilt I felt for not showing my friends the magic it contained.

I rarely opened the locket, scared of the transformation that happened when I did. I often wondered if my traumatized child brained had imagined it. I had once accidentally opened the locket inside my pocket once. The key sliced my pants all to hell. It was pretty hard to explain that one to Aerith.

Hesitantly, I opened the small locket. Instantly it shot into the key like weapon. What was this thing? Why did I feel the need to protect it like I did, to keep it hidden.

I had thought of going to Ansem once or twice, to show him what it could do, but I always thought better of it. What if he wanted to experiment on it? What if he wanted to experiment on me? I didn't know him well enough to know if that was the case, but the place gave me the creeps. That's all I needed to know. Finally tired of lying in bed and contemplating the past I pulled the covers over my head and made myself fall asleep.

I rose the next morning like I always did. My internal alarm clock had long ago set itself to wake me up early in the morning. I could smell breakfast being cooked downstairs. So I hauled myself out of bed and dressed in my uniform for work. I donned the short skirt that Aerith had made all of her employees. It tied with a bow behind my waist. I pulled on my tights underneath it, because to be honest I have never been much of a skirt person anyway and riding a bike in a mini skirt was no small task. I also pulled on my tennis shoes that I wore almost every day, much to Aerith's disappointment. She was always trying to dress me up in something girly and sweet, and that just wasn't who I was. I always felt odd and exposed when I stuff like that. I pulled on a tank top, my collared over-shirt and then finally my apron. I quickly pulled a brush through my tangled hair and trotted down the stairs.

I sat at the table right as Aerith sat a plate down in front of me. Despite her only being a few years my senior she had taken over the motherly role quite nicely. She had always taken care of me, giving me a place to stay, food to eat, and a job. She never seemed to mind, and was probably the nicest person I knew

"Good morning!" she cheerfully greeted me. I smiled in response picking up my fork and shoving her delicious cooking down my throat.

"Morning'.." I managed through my mouth full of food. We ate our breakfast and chatted like we did every morning. Nothing about this day said it was going to be any different from the others. Aerith looked up at the clock and stood. I followed suit knowing that it was time for work. We walked down the streets of Radiant Garden together. The weather never seemed to change here. It was always warm and sunny, it was almost like some sort of paradise. Other than the ominous castle in the distance, everything here just made me feel at home.

We got to the shop only minutes after leaving, waiting at the door was another co-worker.

"Hey Eli." I greeted. She smiled at me, her golden eyes almost gleaming.

"Hello," she replied. Eli stood at the door, her uniform in perfect form as usual. I don't think the skirt was much her thing either. Outside of work she always dressed sort of earthy. Tan pants and green shirts, the earth tones made her eyes shine even more. Her shoulder length blonde hair matched her sunny nature. She seemed at home in the sunlight. Her real name was Eliora but I didn't know anyone who called her that. She was shy when she first came to town, but she made her share of friends anyway. One of her closest friends was Braig, one of Ansem's apprentices, they had gotten engaged a year or so ago.

It was a slow day at the shop, with no special orders or deliveries to be made. Most of the day we lazed about, prepping some flowers and tending the garden out back. There was really nothing else to be done.

"Why don't you girls go pick us up some lunch," Aerith said to us when hours of boredom had started to make our tummy rumble. She handed me and Eli both a small handful of munny, and with that we headed into town in search of something yummy to eat.

I had always felt a weird connection with Eli, even if we didn't spend all the time together that me and Aerith and the others did. She was also an outsider, someone who had come to Radiant Garden by some other means. She came to town about two years after I did, she lived in an orphanage a long ways out of town for a long time before that. There was some talk about sending me there when they found me, if Aerith hadn't agreed to take me I'm sure that is where I would have ended up.

She worked hard, and was thankful for the job that Aerith had given her. She didn't even hesitate when she showed up on the shop steps. We have been working together for a long time and I had grown quite fond of her. We placed our order at a small diner in town and took a seat at one of the outdoor tables while we waited for it to be completed.

"I'm surprised you aren't out with Braig." I teased flipping one of the munnies in the air and catching it. Eli quickly lost her happy smile which until now I had no reason to suspect it of being fake.

"What's wrong?" I asked, straightening in my chair at her sudden change in demeanor.

"I haven't seen him in a while. I've been really worried." I'm sure I looked confused at this.

"How long has it been?" I asked.

"It's been a few weeks at least," She continued to look down at the table.

"How do you go a few weeks without hearing from your fiance'?" I inquired.

"I don't know, something doesn't feel right." Eli almost shuttered as she said it. I continued to look at her, confused and worried.

"I'm sure he will turn up, he has probably just been really busy," I offered trying to stay cheerful.

"It's not just Braig." Her voice was becoming darker and sadder by the minute. "Everything today just feels... off. I can't shake this feeling like something terrible is going to happen."

"Have another one of your dreams?" I reached out to touch her hand, to try and be comforting. She looked up at me and tried to smile. Eli was special in a lot of ways. I don't just mean that she was a nice girl, she was different. She was always having dreams, strange ones that even after having them explained to me I just never quite understood them. I always thought she should be some sort of therapist or something. She always knew what to say to make the situation better. It sucked that I didn't have her knack for tackling human emotion. I don't think I was making this any better.

"Just a feeling," she finally replied

"Everyone feels like that sometimes, try not to let it bother you." We sat in silence for a while, it was obvious I hadn't made her feel any better. "Hey! Why don't you go look for him?" I asked. "The shop is dead today, there is nothing better you need to be doing."

"Are you sure?" I could see it in her eyes that she wanted to go, that pure will power was all that was keeping her here.

"Of course! If we get any orders I will be enough to help Aerith. Go, and let me know tomorrow if you find him. I'm sure everything is going to be fine." I ended my little rant with an encouraging smile. She quickly stood, she didn't look as optimistic as I was.

"Thank you." I could tell how grateful she was as she shot off to go look for him.

I waited around for the food and made my way back to Aerith's shop. We ate our food and waited for orders to come in as I told her what was going on with Eliora.

"Poor dear, I knew she had seemed a little off the last few days. I hope everything is alright." Aerith was as sympathetic as always. Sometimes I thought she was a little too kind. How she kept herself from being taken advantage of was beyond me.

The rest of the day was uneventful, we cleaned up, I ran what little orders we did have, and then we walked home. The gang was busy I guess, they never came by. Instead me and Aerith ate dinner alone and I went up to bed.

What Eli said continued to run through my head.

_"I can't shake this feeling that something bad is going to happen."_

I don't know if her saying it only made me more aware to my own feelings, or if it just made me a little on the paranoid side, but I had felt anxious since she left the cafe', I hoped she found Braig and that everything was alright. She had always been such a sweet girl, like a distant older sister to me. Braig had always seemed to make her happy, I would feel terrible if something happened to him. She would be devastated, I think.

It took me forever to get to sleep. My brain whirled with thoughts all over the spectrum. The harder I tried to calm my mind, the more active it became. After what felt like hours I was finally able to get to sleep.

It must have only been an hour after I passed out that Aerith came bolting into my room. The door slammed open and I shot up in surprise. It was very unlike Aerith to not only be awake at this hour, but to come in without knocking.

"Whas' ammatter?" I slurred through my drool. As I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes I could see the panic on Aerith's face and my heart started pounding.

"You have to get up! Now!" I obeyed without hesitation.

"What's going on?" I asked, attempting to pull on my clothes.

"No time for that, come on." She grabbed my hand and almost ripped me from my room. I was having trouble keeping up as she pulled me down the stairs and out the door. I was in awe at the world around me.

It was happening again. The demons, with their yellow eyes rose and fell against the earth like the tide. Screams and yells were all around me and for a moment I felt like I was having a nightmare, some sort of bizarre flash back.

"Don't just stand there! We have to get to the others!" Aerith's shouting pulled me back to reality and I jogged after her. I felt like my head was swirling, like I couldn't focus on any one thing. I kept looking around and thinking. 'This is my fault, I caused this.' Somewhere I knew this wasn't the case, but after losing two worlds to the heartless you start to think that maybe something with you is at fault.

"Where are we going?" I shouted over the commotion.

"Cid's! The other said we were going to meet up there." I stopped running.

"Are we leaving?" I knew Cid had been working on a ship, one that could travel between worlds supposedly. Was it ready? Could it really fly us to safety?

"We don't have a choice." She reached for my hand again and we started running through the streets.

It was awful, people were being consumed all around me, falling. The only thing that kept us from being overcome ourselves was pure luck. People I knew, people I saw everyday were falling around me. It was worse this time because I had a memory of every one. Each face twisted in terror I had once seen smiling at me as I rode my bike past. Then it hit me and I pulled my hand from Aerith's. She twirled around to see what was the matter.

"I have to find Eliora." I could tell Aerith agreed but fear and desperation held her face.

"I don't know if we have time, we need to go, they won't wait forever."

"Go ahead of me!" I told her waving her on. "Try and stall them." I didn't wait for her to argue with me. I took off at a full sprint towards Eli's house. The lights were all out, I knew she lived alone, did she even know what was going on? I banged on the door with my fist, no one answered, I shook the doorknob but it was locked. I took a deep breath, wondering on what to do. Then in a moment of madness I braced myself, and punched the window as hard as I could. It cracked, and my hand vibrated from the force, it was cut, bleeding in places. I inhaled and held it as I took one more swing at the window. It broke the rest of the way. Hopefully Eli would forgive me.

I climbed in through the window calling her name. No one answered. Her room was untouched, the bed still made from the morning before. She never came home after going to look for Braig. I started to panic then. I couldn't leave her in all this madness but at this point, she might already be gone. She might have been at the castle, I know that Braig spends a lot of this time up there. One of Ansem's workers sometimes gave her a hard time, could she have ran into him on her way to find her fiance?

I didn't have time to look for her properly, and it pained me to do so, but I had to get to Cid's. I yelled her name as I traversed the alleyways between her house and Cid's garage. No one answered. I teared up at the thought of losing anyone else to these monsters.

"Help!" someone screamed over the ruckus. Hoping it was my friend, I rushed toward the screams as they increased with intensity. A young girl was cornered by the beasts, she was probably a few years younger than me, her scared face stared at me from the darkness.

I didn't know what to do, my heart was racing, but I had to do something. I knew that much. It was almost instinct, I reached into my pocket and thumbed my locket open. The blade formed instantly in my hands.

"Hey!" I screamed trying to get the monsters attention, but it wasn't necessary, once I drew the blade all eyes were on me.

"Oh man," I muttered under my breath and desperately hoped that what little sparring lessons I had wouldn't fail me now.

I felt clumsy with the weapon in my hands. It was heavy and I was not very good at wielding it. I had never tried. It was enough though. The monsters flinched as the blade struck through their shadowy bodies. I carved a path to the girl and took her hand. She was baffled, but took it anyway. I drug her from the alley toward Cid's. If I couldn't save Eli, I would save anyone I could.

We were closing in on the garage. I could see it off in the distance. It seemed everything was going to be okay. As if to spite me, a large rumbling filled the air. I looked up dumbly trying to find it's source. Parts of the building above started to crack and break.

"Run!" I told the girl. She tried her best to keep up, but I wasn't fast enough. A large piece of rubble fell and landed on my leg. I screamed out, sure that my leg had broken under the impact. The girl pulled on me frantically which only made me cry out harder.

"Go." I told her, gritting my teeth in pain. "Get to the garage up the road." She stared at me for a moment and then took off in that direction. She only lasted moments before a hoard of the beasts pulled her to the ground and she was nothing. Just like that she was gone. I screamed for her, cried for her. I cried out Eli's name, Aerith's, hoping that anyone would hear me.

Squall came into view as I was giving up hope. I yelled for him as he passed in front of me, he was like an angel in that moment. He turned to look at me, relief falling over his serious face.

"Damn it Zaria," He growled and with my help he was able to push the chuck of building off of my leg. "Can you walk?" I shook my head, tears still falling down my cheeks. He picked me up bridal style, I buried my face in his chest and sobbed. He said nothing, only jogged with me in his arms to the garage.

"Oh thank god!" That was Aerith as we entered the hanger.

"On the ship guys, if we wait any longer we ain't getting out of here!" Cid called.

The rest is a haze, we boarded the ship. I dozed in and out in Aerith's lap as she stroked my hair. The face of the girl haunted me as I relived her death, her heart floating to the void. I could hear her cries ringing in my ears as I fell into a restless slumber.


End file.
